Dust supply from river floodplains: the case of the lower Huang He (Yellow River) recorded in a loess–palaeosol sequence from the Mangshan Plateau

The Mangshan Plateau is located on the south bank of the Huang He (Yellow River) just west of the city of Zhengzhou, well outside the Loess Plateau in central China. Mixing models of the grain‐size data indicate that the loess deposits are mixtures of three loess components. Comparison of the mixing model with existing models established for a series of loess–palaeosol sequences from the Loess Plateau indicates that the Mangshan loess has been supplied from a proximal dust source, the Huang He floodplain, during major dust outbreaks. The high accumulation rates, the composition of the loess components, and especially the high proportions of a sandy loess component support this. Owing to the exceptionally high accumulation rates, the Mangshan grain size, magnetic susceptibility and carbonate records provide a high‐resolution archive of environmental and climate change. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

利用自回归模型检测地球极移重力效应

同时采用4个台站的国际超导重力仪长期连续重力观测资料和国际地球自转服务中心提供的同步地球自转参数，研究了极移引起的地球重力场变化特征。利用自回归模型估计了各序列的功率谱密度和积谱密度，结果表明极移导致的重力效应的主要能量集中在Chandler摆动和周年项附近，叠积后实际重力观测与极移重力信号理论值之间的差异分别为0．4％和3．9％，说明超导重力仪可有效监测极移导致的重力变化。     

A new radiolarian species Clathrocorys gracilis from northern South China Sea

A new species,Clathrocorys gracilis nov. spec. of Tripocyrtidae (Radiolarians: Nassellaria) from surface water in northern South China Sea, is described in this paper. The new species has four radial beams arising from the cephalic base centre, each foot with cup-shaped structure and ramified bar in the proximal section (near cephalic base), and each wing with a large mesh in the middle, a medium mesh and a small mesh on each side respectively. Project supported by the NSFC (No. 40276044) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KSCX2-SW-101B).     

Dynamic analysis of three-dimensional marine cables

Marine cables are widely used in a variety of offshore activities. In this paper, a numerical approach is presented which is capable of predicting the dynamic behaviour of three-dimensional marine cables. The solution of this problem is of practical importance in the estimation of dybamic loading and motion, and thus has direct application to the enhancement of safety and the effectiveness of the offshore activities. The approach is based upon the lump-mass-and-spring model and the finite difference method. Mathematical analysis is provided on the basic characteristics of the model and the numerical stability. A numerical example is given to demonstrate the validity of the approach.     

On the Line Formation in Stellar Magnetized Atmospheres

1 INTRODUCTIONIn the previous paper (on et al. 1999, hereafter Paper I), we investigated the wavelength-dependence of four colltribution functions (CFs) derived from dmerent formal solutions andreferring to different emergellt quantities in the unpolarized case. Because one cannot generallyassign a single formation region to the whole line band in a real stellar atmosphere, e.g., the solaratmosphere, instead, the line formation region can be defined as the layers deviating farthestfrom t…     

Formation of saline groundwaters in the Baltic region through freezing of seawater during glacial periods

Typical Ca---Cl brines occur in crystalline and metamorphic rocks below freshwater horizons at various localities in Sweden and Finland. Total dissolved solids (TDS) range in concentration between 2 and 120 gl⁻¹ and have long been thought to derive from water-rock interactions. The relationships between Na, Cl and Br in these brines suggest, however, that they were derived from freezing of seawater during glacial periods. The brines were subsequently diluted by meteoric waters and their Ca/Mg ratio was increased through water-rock interactions in the subsurface. The hydrogeological model for both the formation of freeze-derived marine brines and their lateral intrusion involves restricted inland marine basins in recent and subrecent polar climatic belts. Seawater in such basins gradually freezes in response to glaciation. The solutes which concentrate in the remaining water body are residual after precipitation of a sequence of minerals which include carbonates, mirabilite and hydrohalite. Hydraulic pressure of the growing ice sheet over the frozen seas is gradually added to the ambient hydrostatic pressure exerted on the brines. This, together with their increased density, increases the intrusional potential of the brines. As the land ice cannot exert hydraulic pressure on continental groundwater in the aquifers, the balance of pressure favours deep landward intrusion of brines. Post-glacial processes cause the subsurface dilution and replacement of the brines both by seawater and fresh waters. The presence of such brines also far from present-day coastal settings reflects the shifting of coastlines as a result of isostatic movements and eustatic sea-level changes associated with glaciation and deglaciation.     

K-H Instability of Dust Plasma

Areview about K-H instability related to comet tail is presented.The effect of dust graing on KHI is theoretically analysed and relations of critical shear to excit KHI with the properties of dust grains both for sheared ion flow and for sheared dust flow re put out.Their possible application in comet tail is suggested.     

Influence of soft clays on the response spectra for structures in eastern Canada

The 1990 edition of the National Building Code of Canada (Associate Committee of the National Building Code, National Research Council, Ottawa, 1990) makes a clear distinction between eastern and western Canada in terms of seismic acceleration and velocity zones. While it is well established that ground motions can be amplified significantly through loose clay deposits, no results are available that take into consideration the typical high frequency content of ground motions in eastern Canada. This paper develops ground amplification curves for clays having depths between 10 and 70 m excited by typical eastern Canadian ground motions scaled to two different values of peak horizontal accelerations. Simplified free-field spectral design curves, which could be used by structural designers, are proposed. The curves show that maximum spectral accelerations occur for structural periods between 0.2 and 0.5 s. In addition, soil depth does not appear to be an important parameter controlling the response of typical clay deposits in eastern Canada.